Harkness Fellowships are designed for mid-career professionals who are committed to advancing health policy and practice in The Commonwealth Fund's principal areas of interest: improving health insurance coverage and access to care; and improving the quality and efficiency of health care services. Projects may include comparisons between the United States and the applicant's home country. Fellowships are not awarded to support study for academic degrees. All applicants must:

• Be citizens of Australia, Germany, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, or the United Kingdom (in the U.K., citizens of other countries with permanent residency and five or more years tenure in the U.K. may also apply);
• Show significant promise as a policy-oriented health services researcher or practitioner (clinician, health services manager, government official, or journalist);
• Have a demonstrated expertise in health policy issues and a track record of informing health policy through research, policy analysis, health services, or clinical leadership;
• Have a master's degree or doctorate (or the equivalent thereof) in health care services, health policy research, or a related discipline, such as economics or political science (consideration may be given to candidates with a bachelor's degree only, depending on work experience); and
• If academically based, be at a mid-career level (e.g., research fellow to senior lecturer).

  Candidates are selected based on their qualifications and leadership potential; their commitment to improving health care through research and practice; the quality of their research proposal; the relevance of their proposed research to the Fund's areas of interest and to policy development in their home country; and the strength of their supporting letters.

  Applications are reviewed by Fund staff and a panel of experts appointed in each of the five countries. A limited number of applicants will be invited for interviews, which will be conducted in London (for U.K. applicants), Germany (for German applicants), the Netherlands (for Dutch applicants), Norway (for Norwegian applicants), Switzerland (for Swiss applicants), Sydney (for Australian applicants), and Wellington or Auckland (for New Zealand applicants). Awards are subject to approval by the Fund's president and are contingent upon the Fund's approval of a final project proposal, budget, and mentor/institutional placement. The Fund does not provide critiques of applications that are declined.